Office Hours Monday-Friday 10 AM to 6 PM

Spanish Classes

Overview

At Berges Institute we use our own teaching approach: the Graf Method. It is a logic-based system that takes advantage of your already developed speech skills in your native language to teach you Spanish. We show you how the language works. You will learn a simplified set of tools that will make you able to express yourself in about every topic and every tense in a relatively short amount of time.

The complete Graf Method at Berges Institute is divided into 5 courses. These courses last 10 weeks, meeting once a week for 1.5 hours. Before registering you are required to take the placement test, either online or at Berges Institute (unless you are a beginner; in that case you do not need to take the test). According to your test results you will be placed in the level that best suits your current skills.

You can sign up for classes online, and register for a section according to your schedule and skills. You can also register by phone, by
email or in person at the Institute. After you are registered, you can pay anytime before the first class, either online, by phone, by mail or in person at Berges Institute (checks, cash or credit card).

These are the 5 courses:

Beginners

If you don’t have a Spanish background at all, this is the place to start. We use the Graf Method, which is our very own teaching approach that focuses on quickly learning communication skills. We have great teachers that will make class fun and exciting. You will learn conversational and writing skills in the present tense in a variety of topics. You will develop the ability to introduce yourself, talk about your personal and daily life, and ask other people about their life and habits.

Tuition: $259. No registration fee. We provide all materials.
You can pay your tuition up front or split it into two payments of $129.50.

Program duration: 10 weeks, meeting once a week for 1.5 hours.
We have morning, evening, night and weekend sessions.

Level 2

If you are already familiar with the present tense, can introduce yourself, talk a little bit about yourself, ask other people about themselves, and you know some basic vocabulary (family, parts of the body, and some everyday objects), you are ready for Level 2.

In this level, you will work on the past tense (it's called Pretérito Perfecto). You will improve your descriptive vocabulary as you learn how to tell stories of what you or other people did in the past.

Tuition: $259. No registration fee. We provide all materials.
You can pay your tuition up front or split it into two payments of $129.50.

Program duration: 10 weeks, meeting once a week for 1.5 hours.
We have morning, evening, night and weekend sessions.

Level 3

If you are comfortable with telling simple stories from the past, for example, saying what you did last week in Spanish, you should register for Level 3.

In this level, you will work on the Pretérito Imperfecto tense, its uses, and its differences from the Pretérito Perfecto. You will learn how to use both past tenses combined. You will also start working on direct object pronouns and the future tense (using verb ir), and of course, you will expand your vocabulary.

Tuition: $259. No registration fee. We provide all materials.
You can pay your tuition up front or split it into two payments of $129.50.

Program duration: 10 weeks, meeting once a week for 1.5 hours.
We have morning, evening, night and weekend sessions.

Level 4

If you are totally comfortable using Pretérito Perfecto and Pretérito Imperfecto tenses, you can register for Level 4.

In this course, you will work deeply on direct objects and indirect object pronouns as you expand your vocabulary, review the past tenses, and work on the future tense. You will also learn the compound tenses, read stories that will be discussed in class, and write challenging assignments.

Tuition: $259. No registration fee. We provide all materials.
You can pay your tuition up front or split it into two payments of $129.50.

Program duration: 10 weeks, meeting once a week for 1.5 hours.
We have morning, evening, night and weekend sessions.

Level 5

If you are confident speaking in the past, present and future tenses and have a wide vocabulary, you should take Level 5.

In this level, you will work hard on the subjunctive mood, the conditional structure, and the commands. You will learn how to approach complex sentences and you will be reading and writing at a relatively high complexity level.

Tuition: $259. No registration fee. We provide all materials.
You can pay your tuition up front or split it into two payments of $129.50.

Program duration: 10 weeks, meeting once a week for 1.5 hours.
We have morning, evening, night and weekend sessions.

What happens after level 5?

If you are done with all 5 levels of Spanish or if you tested out, the next way to go is to take weekly Private Lessons and/or join a Conversation Class. You know the basics needed for communication more than well enough, and now you need to practice and practice!

Auxiliary Private Lessons at reduced price

If you think you would benefit from extra instruction while you are registered for a group class, if you have missed a session, or if you would like to explore your one-on-one conversational skills, you can always buy extra Private Lessons offered at a reduced price ($30/hour) to matriculated students. You can schedule them at your convenience at anytime on weekdays or weekends.

Discount for conversation classes

Students currently taking any of our regular Spanish classes (Levels 3 to 5) receive a 30% discount when purchasing any package of conversation classes.